Straw hat.



F. WRIGHT. ,*sfTRAW HAT. APPLIOATI'ION FILED JAN. 9, 1913.

latented Bec. 23, 1913.

45 crown portion, and having fragments of the under brim broken away so as to expose Losaooo.

To all fwlwmjz'zl m concern.'

B'e it. known t at l', F11-Ancre WRIGHT, a

.subject of the King of Great Bri-tain', re

siding' 'at 23 Cardiff road, Luton` in the county of Bedford, England, have invented 4crown are unstit'ened so as to render them -soft and pliable, the object of the presentinvention being to preserve the flexibility of the parts while enabling` the hat to conform to the head of the wearer and to retain its shape in wear.

According to 'this inventionl a suitable number of radially arranged iexible but inextensible bands are provided in the brim and extended up to a certain distance into the-interior of the crown portion; the said bands having their ends secured to the latter.- portion after being passed around the strip of straw covered cane which Is 1nserted at the outer circumference of the brim Y between the layers comprising the same. In conjunction with the aforesaid radial bands a band of the iuextensible material isapplied in a taut condition about the outer side of the crown portion near the brirn. It has heretofore been proposed to apply insertion strips composed o t metal shaped to the angle formed by the Junction ofthe brim and crown portions but these arrangements do not afford the eii'ectaimed at bythe present invention.

In order that the said invention may be clearly 'understood and readily carried into effect, I will proceed todescribe the same with reference tothe accompanying drawingsz in which Figure A1 is a perspective view'of a hat constructed according to the present invenjt-i'on. Fig. 2 is a plan of the under side of the brim looking into the interior of the the radial bands. A Fig. 3j is ai diagrammatic tions of the hat drawn to a larger scale.

-`The brim a and the sides b of the crown portionare not treated for stiiiening as is the case with ordinary straw hats, the principal object being to render the hat soft and .itsel'to the shape-'of the head and afford pliable so that the samewill accommodate taut condition in the bri tiene the length ofthe said bands will not toller ble the' sa' partseto reserve their shape while riotgP detraeting' ern-fthesoft and'pliablenatl'd'eof* 'the article', a suitable teneible so than when they' are secnredjimsag be subjected to variation. The bands c are applied by passing the samabout theA straw covered cane edging d; the cane therein being indicated at d This edgingfis usually inserted' between the upper and under brim parts andis securedjn the -ordinary way. The said bandsv o laredrawnjaut across the brim andthe ends arecarried a certain distance u the innerl Sidel. of the crown portion (as s own 'at Fig'f), to which latter the said ends are secured bystitching or other suitable means. vIn conju nctic` xjr with the aforesaid bandsY c a band e of the. said inextensible vmaterial `is also".` applied around the exterior surface ofthe'. (rownb. This band is secured -by -stitching' or other convenient meansaftei the samehas been drawn tightly and closely about the outer. surface of the crown.-

ease and comfort* `inthe wearer. In orderand crownl p or- The above described arrangementaffords an' effective and economical method 'of securing a perfectly flexible and soft fitting straw. hat, the latter conforming readily to the shape or conformation of the wearer-s head and owing tothe inextensible character of the surrounding band and the intervening radial bands the size and shape of the hat and brim generally are preserved. A"The bandsdo notdetract from the pliability of the crown portion and brim-.although 'they i have' arestraining influence owing to their inabilit'y'to stretch-or lengthen.

at I claim and desire to'- secure by Letters Patent of the United States is 1. .In a-straw hat7 the combination with unstii'e'ned brim and crown portions Vof ilexible but inextensible bands of woven fabricv each `v'secured in tautcondition radially in the brim and having apart which extends up and is secured to the inner side of the crown portion land a band of inc xtensiblev materiall which is bound tightly/ around the 'outer surface of the crownportlon 'so as to v liggpemtlvefat the -lewerggra-taerebiagarf i etici:

; gre secured to 'the inner side ofthe crown -ggrtion and a ba'nd' of webbing which is '10 n 'und tightly 'around the outer surface of the crown portion so vas to be operative at the lower Part thereof near theengie -formed by the Junction of the brim therewith.

' "3.; In va strnw hat, the combination with wznngtiened brim and crown portiont` of iiexi- "'\'\b1 but inextensibie bands composed of webbing which are secured inftut'ondiimstiffeed'brim and .crown .portions of flexi- "f die yhinthe brimand which extend up and.

tion radially in the brim by passing the-seid i Y baid's cbout' the" straw covered Acane strip insertion andbetween thenpper and 'under secured-to the inner sideof. the crown'portion and' abnd f webbing which is bound tightly around the outer surface of the crown portion so as to be operative at the lower partthereof near theangle formed by the junction of the .brim therewith.

In testimony 2o brims `and whichb'ands extend up and :are

whereof I- aiix my signature]v i -m presence ofv twowitnesses:l i 

